Diablo 4’s mechanics are pretty well-understood by its hardcore community by this point – from the fact that elemental resistances are basically nonfunctional to the critical requirement of Vulnerability applicators on every single build. There’s a big, buff-heavy balance patch on the horizon (sometime before Season 1, per the developers), but it won’t affect what we’re talking about today:Lucky hits. Here’s how Lucky Hits are calculated in Diablo 4.
What Does a Lucky Hit Do in Diablo 4?
Put simply, a Lucky Hit is anindependently rolledmodifier thatvaries in likelihood between Skills. I’m going to use Druid as an example in this piece, since that’s what I play most.
Storm Strikehas aBase Lucky Hit Chance of 25%. This means every time I use my Storm Strike, there’s a 1/4 chance it will be a “Lucky Hit.” This isNOTa Critical Strike – it doesno extra damage, but it doestrigger the chance of ALL Lucky Hit Effects.
For instance, if we also take the Passive SkillElemental Exposure, we’re given a10% chanceon Lucky Hitto also make enemies Vulnerable.
Related:Diablo 4: Thorns Stat Explained
How Are Lucky Hit Effects Calculated in Diablo 4?
Let’s put these two Skills together – when we attack with Storm Strike, having taken the Elemental Exposure ability, we have a10% chance within our 25% Lucky Hit chance tomake enemies Vulnerable for 1 second. It calculates as follows:
0.25 [Storm Strike] x 0.1 [Elemental Exposure] = 0.025 or 2.5% chance to make enemies Vulnerablefor 1 second
It’s quite convoluted, but Lucky Hit effects are often powerful, so their low likelihood of proccing makes sense. Also,Lucky Hit Effects can trigger simultaneously. This means you can activate none, one, or all of your Lucky Hit Effects with a single strike.
Remember, some abilities havehigher Lucky Hit chances than others, andLucky Hit chance can be increased by affixes. Use this to your advantage if you’re trying to trigger Lucky Hit Effects often.
If you’re curious about other unique, somewhat obtuse stats, check out ourDiablo 4 guide on Crackling Energy.
David Morgan
David is a pediatric asthma researcher at Cincinnati Children’s Hospital by day, and Prima Freelancer by night. He always finds time for the games he loves, and then some more to tell you all about them.
